Greek · c. 150–170 CE

Tetrabiblos

Apotelesmatika, esp. I.8 'Of the Power of the Aspects to the Sun' and II.6 'Of the Time of the Predicted Events' (Robbins numbering)

Ptolemy's astrology treats a planet's phase relative to the Sun as changing its power. In Book I, ch. 8, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars are 'more productive of moisture from rising to their first station, of heat from first station to evening rising', of dryness from there to the second station, and of cold from the second station to setting. In Book II, ch. 6, planets 'rising or stationary' intensify predicted events, while setting planets bring an abatement (Robbins' translation).

Author: Claudius Ptolemy
Date: c. 150–170 CE
Original language: Greek
Kind: Astrological
Planets: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn

On the shelf · Greece and Rome · 13−1800 → 2026

−1800−1500−1000−5001500100015002026

Span · c. 150–170 CESame shelfThis source’s span

Editions

2 editions.

Year	Edition	©
1940	Ptolemy, Tetrabiblos, ed. and tr. F. E. Robbins, Loeb Classical Library 435, Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press / London: Heinemann, 1940	PD
1998	Claudii Ptolemaei Opera III.1: Apotelesmatika, ed. W. Hübner, Stuttgart/Leipzig: Teubner, 1998	©

PD public domain · © in copyright

Read it

One digitised copy.

Robbins' 1940 Loeb translation, all four books, online textLacusCurtius (Bill Thayer), University of ChicagoPDOpen ↗

Myths we don’t repeat

Checked, and left out.

Myth 01
Not in Ptolemy: the modern 'Mercury retrograde means communication breakdown' doctrine.

References

Also on the Greece and Rome shelf

Date	Source	Planets	Kind
1st century BCE (often placed c. 50 BCE)	Introduction to the PhenomenaGeminusMath. astronomy	Me Ve Ma Ju Sa	Math. astronomy
1st century CE (Greek original); Arabic version c. 800 CE	Carmen AstrologicumDorotheus of SidonAstrological	General	Astrological
c. 77–79 CE	Natural History, Book IIPliny the ElderTheory / model	Me Ve Ma Ju Sa	Theory / model
early 2nd century CE	Expositio rerum mathematicarumTheon of SmyrnaTheory / model	Me Ve Ma Ju Sa	Theory / model
c. 150 CE	Almagest, Book XIIClaudius PtolemyMath. astronomy	Me Ve Ma Ju Sa	Math. astronomy
c. 150–175 CE	AnthologyVettius ValensAstrological	General	Astrological